Heretofore, attempts have been made to establish depth perception for endoscopes by using coextensive optical systems employing fiberoptics and relying upon the parallax angle between the two viewing paths to provide depth perception. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,520,587 Tasaki et al and 4,061,135 Wildran et al are representative examples. Endoscopes of these types possess two unusual attributes. First, the image focus is universal, that is, it is independent of the distance from the distal tip of the endoscope. Second, the power of magnification is a product of distance so that magnification automatically increases with decreasing distance to the object. There are significant shortcomings in endoscopes of this type. One shortcoming is that the perception of distance becomes entirely dependent upon the viewer's prior knowledge of the size of the object being viewed. Another limitation is that in order to obtain increased magnification, the distal end of the endoscope must be advanced to a distance so close to the object being examined so as to risk touching or even puncture of the object. In a surgical environment this is not only dangerous, but intolerable.